The star of the TV series “Fauda” about Israeli special forces is seriously wounded in Gaza

The actor participated in the destruction of Hamas tunnels

A leading Israeli actor, best known for his role as a special forces soldier in the hit Netflix series “Fauda,” was critically wounded in Gaza while fighting for the Israeli military against Hamas, according to his family and the hospital where he is being treated.

CNN reports that Idan Amedi, 35, is in critical condition in the intensive care unit at Shiba Tel Hashomer Medical Center near Tel Aviv, a hospital spokesman said.

However, the star’s father told Israeli website Walla!: “His life is not in danger.”

Amedi, who is of Kurdish origin, rose to fame in the 2010s as a singer-songwriter before joining the cast of “Fauda” in 2017. He plays a member of an Israeli special forces unit named Sagi in the series, which follows Israeli agent Doron Cavillo who comes out of retirement to hunt a Palestinian militant he thought he killed, according to the show’s official Netflix page.

According to Fauda co-authors Lior Raz and Avi Issacharoff, Amedi volunteered to fight for the Israeli military in Gaza following the October 7 Hamas attacks on Israel.

“Idan is a true hero, and from the first day of the war he decided to put everything aside and go fight. First in the north and then in the south [Газы]”, they said to Walla!

Prominent Israelis, including Minister without Portfolio Chili Tropper and folk rock singer Shlomo Artzi, also expressed their concern for Amedee’s condition and wished him a speedy recovery, Vallah! reported.

Shortly before he was wounded, Amedi spoke to an Israeli television channel about the fighting in Gaza.

“It’s crazy what they [ХАМАС] built here,” he said in an interview with Channel 12. – The operation here takes place along the most central route [туннеля ХАМАС]. We found kilometers of tunnels, weapons, even special weapons here. We’ve been busy trying to destroy it for the last two days.”

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) claims that Hamas has built a labyrinth of tunnels that span the entire strip, an underground network used to transport people and goods, store rockets and ammunition, and house Hamas control centers.

Hamas in 2021 claimed to have built 500 kilometers (about 311 miles) of tunnels under Gaza, although it was unclear whether that figure was accurate or posturing, CNN noted.

During its ongoing offensive in the enclave, the Israeli military says it has destroyed hundreds of mine tunnels and discovered many more – including at Al Shifa Hospital, which was besieged by the Israel Defense Forces in November, drawing widespread international condemnation because , what doctors called “catastrophic” conditions inside.

At least 185 Israeli soldiers have been killed and more than 1,000 others wounded in fighting in Gaza since Israeli forces stepped up their ground offensive in late October, according to the IDF.

More than 23,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza since October 7 and more than 59,000 others have been wounded, the enclave’s Hamas-controlled Health Ministry said on Tuesday.